As research on cancer progresses, it is increasingly evident that single drug formulations provide only limited success. Many researchers therefore aim to develop suitable combination therapies. One of the most important requirements of combination therapy is a simple and efficacious drug delivery system. Many chemotherapeutics currently in use are poorly water soluble, which significantly complicates the search for suitable delivery systems. Combining two or three drugs in a formulation presents additional challenges in clinical practice because of compatibility and stability issues. Safer and more effective delivery of drug combinations relies on the development of biocompatible delivery systems capable of solubilizing the drug combination without using harsh surfactants or excipients. Stable and biocompatible drug formulations that improve bioavailability without causing toxicity are needed in the field of cancer research.
The PI3K-AKT-TOR pathway is the most deregulated pathway leading to cancer. However, drugs that target TOR have not yet been effective to treat cancer, and the PI3-AKT-TOR pathway has proven more complex than was earlier believed. Clinical trials with TOR inhibitors have failed for several cancers where inhibition of TOR resulted in the unintended activation of an oncogenic kinase called AKT.
Accordingly, what is needed is a combination drug therapy regimen that targets more than one point in the mTOR pathway. Also needed is a delivery vehicle that can solubilize efficacious drug combinations in a safe and effective manner, preferably without the use of pharmaceutical excipients that result in complications in treatment.